The “Master swordsman” who was reincarnated, wants to live freely - Chapter 119
Translator: NovelMultiverse
A few days had passed, and I was paying a visit to the Knights Order’s hospital ward.
It was a not all too large room in the middle of the complex. A girl was looking out of the window – It was Ruino. Slowly she faced towards me.
“…What do you want?”
She had a very blunt attitude.
I laughed wryly and sat down on a chair near the bed.
“I came here to check on your health, actually”
“As you can see I am fine. Nihi, perhaps… you were worried?”
“Maybe I was. If you came at me right away, hoping for a fight, then yes, I would say you’re quite healthy I suppose”
“…I don’t have a sword right now. And besides, I have someone I need to defeat before I’ll face you”
She said, as she put on a rather dissatisfied look on her face. “Someone she has to defeat” — That must be Iris.
After she’d been defeated by Iris she has been “left to live”. Perhaps she’s already aware of this though.
Would she still live on a life where the loser of a fight is met with “death”?
Living after she had lost was a new experience for Ruino. Perhaps this would be the first experience to walking a new sort of path in life.
I figure she must also be quite confused.
“Iris was quite strong, wasn’t she?”
“…Nihi, I only think she’s too naive in her way of thinking”
“I wouldn’t call her naïve. She wants to protect others – It’s easily said, but to actually make that a reality… She’d have to become stronger than everyone else”
“No matter how strong you become, you can never save everyone”
“True. Still, giving up on everything and not giving up on anything is quite a difference”
“…So you say, but that really doesn’t make much sense to me. And besides, I haven’t given up on everything yet”
“Ooh, that’s right. That’s why you’re becoming stronger right. You’re still like that, right? But I think you’ll change your way of doing so, no?”
“My way of doing?”
“Just will… be part of the Black Wolves Knights Order’s observation team. You managed to slay two of the Swordsman Gang’s members and then went about against Iris as well. Iris surely wouldn’t have wanted it so, but that’s a different story”
“The observation team, huh. Nihi, she’s really not willing to kill me, is she?”
“Yea… That’s what Iris has gained from winning that fight”
“How would it have been would I have fought you? Would you also have not killed me?”
Ruino laughed and seemed like she really wanted an answer.
I knew – I knew that she was Souki’s granddaughter.
And because I knew,
“Only if there really was a need to do so. That’s just the type of guy I am”
“…Nihi, You two are quite alike. However, you’d actually kill me”
You could feel the tension in the atmosphere.
As if our fight was about to break out at any moment. But, Ruino wasn’t in a position to do so, she was still lying on her bed after all.
“It’s fine. No matter how I would lose anyway… I’ll give you that now”
“That really saves us a lot of trouble. Well, I should be going soon… I just wanted to relay one last message”
“A last message?”
“Yes, from one of the Swordsman Gang members, Riglus Harvey. “The last slash was the most beautiful one” – That is what the message was.
“…Hmph”
Ruino cast her eyes away and mumbled as if she was uninterested.
Ruino must’ve known who Riglus Harvey was.
There was no need for me to tell her either.
That being said – Ruino seemed a bit happy after she heard these words.
(No matter who it is, people like to get praised)
I left the hospital room and made my way home.
There is still a lot left to do about Ruino – Still, I will watch over her as well.
That is the least I can do to a man I once called a friend…
(…Ooh, that’s right—)
I just realized one thing in regards to this.
Raul Izalf too … thought of him as a friend.
If he did not do so, I wouldn’t be bothered with this either.
(I really haven’t had much experience with having friends, so maybe that’s why I was so late realizing it?)
As I had some self-mocking thoughts running through my head I left the hospital ward.
I once again realized that peaceful days are really good.
These few days I wasn’t called on to by Remyl, so my job as a teacher at the academy became my main thing.
The fact that they came for my neck already felt like a past experience… So being able to be without worry and relax like this was really the way to go.
— Well, not that there was nothing to be worried about, it’s just that I gave them no thought as of now.
The class was finished, so I am about to finish up work quickly and head home soon … That’s what I thought until I passed right in the hallway and walked into three girls having a conversation.
“Oh, Mr. Schweiss”
“Iris and Alia – And also Minei?”
“Alta, good job!”
I laughed bitterly in response to Minei’s easy greeting.
“Minei, I am your teacher”
“That’s right, Lotto. You have to remember to greet Mr. Schweiss with respect”
“If you say so, Lady Iris”
“You don’t have to call me Lady”
“Oh, that’s right. Erh,… Iris… No, I really am bad at just dropping formalities so suddenly!”
As this kept on for a while, it really seemed as if Iris and Minei got on good terms.
Before it really seemed as if Minei was the kind of person that really had little respect for others.
I wonder where that could’ve gone.
“This all started ever since Iris saved Minei. After that, she managed to finally get in a conversation with Iris”
“…I see”
Alia’s explanation really made clear what was going on here.
Iris had saved Minei – Somehow it seems that by doing so she managed to close the gap between herself and her classmates.
But maybe this would create an even bigger gap in the end.
“I was wondering whether there was a little “something” going on between Iris and MR. Schweiss”
“…A little something? And what would that –”
“What did you and Alia talk about just now, Mr. Schweiss?”
“!”
Alia had suddenly talked to me in a rather low voice.
She then took a distance from me as if to hint at something. … Did she do this on purpose?
That’s what I tough until,
“That’s between me and him”
Alia said as if to confirm whatever was going on.
“Oh, so you’re having a secret talk, right in front of me? Mr. Schweiss…”
Iris then faced me.
This really wasn’t supposed to have any secretive meaning behind it though.
“Mr. Schweiss, what did you and Alia talk about?”
“It wasn’t anything major. It was just—”
“Mr. Schweiss, you can’t tell her”
Alia had stopped me from answering that question.
Iris then frowned as she looked at Alia.
“What? Is it really something to be kept secret?”
“For Iris’ sake, we should keep it a secret”
“For my sake…? There really shouldn’t be anything that you must keep hidden from me, right?!”
Iris drew closer to Alia.
Minei, who looked at this happening, felt like she had to stop Iris from doing so.
“Well well, people can have a secret or two, right?”
“That’s true, but…”
“Are you jealous?”
“! N-No! I am not. I just don’t like the fact that things are hidden from m
Iris responded bluntly to Alia’s remark.
She then looked at me.
For Iris – It must’ve felt like I was hiding something directly from her.
She might still be sensitive about that.
“No, honestly, we weren’t having a talk worth hiding. Alia too should not talk like we just did”
“Right. We were just teasing you, Iris”
“Hmm… Please stop doing so”
“But from me on out, Lady Iris – I mean Iris, I am still kind of interested in your relation to Mr. Schweiss. After all, you two were missing in action at the beach as well”
“! T-That’s…”
Iris seemed to have started shaking a little bit.
She then scraped her throat and answered Minei.
“Mr. Schweiss and I—”
“Iris couldn’t swim, so Mr. Schweiss taught her how to”
“Eh…? You couldn’t swim…?”
“Wha…!? A-Alia! Don’t say such things! Don’t think you can get away with this!”
Alia gallantly started running away, as she got chased by Iris.
Minei too got a bit flustered and gave chase as well.
…Somehow Iris, and Alia as well, are starting to warm up to their classmates.
There is certainly something to it to keep our relationship from getting awkward, but at least this was a step forward.
Still,
“Don’t run in the hallways. I might get angry if you do”
It might’ve been useless to have said this to the girls, as they had already run away. Still, I felt like I had to tell them something teacher-like.
I was going to enjoy these leisure days, and live them to the fullest – That’s what I decided at that moment.